News and Press Releases

St. Paul man sentenced for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 29, 2012

MINNEAPOLIS—Today in federal court, a St. Paul man was sentenced for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine. United States District Judge John R. Tunheim sentenced Martin Fidencio Gutierrez-Alarcon, age 28, to 120 months in prison. Gutierrez-Alarcon, who was indicted on June 12, 2012, pleaded guilty on July 18, 2012, to one count of conspiracy to distribute 50 or more grams of methamphetamine.

Following today’s sentencing, Dan Moren, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (“DEA”) Minneapolis-St. Paul Field Office, said, “The DEA Task Force and its local law enforcement partners continue to focus their collective efforts on targeting those organizations that pose a significant risk to our communities. In this case, individuals linked to the Sinaloa Drug Cartel were distributing the insidious drug, methamphetamine, which remains a priority of all law enforcement due to its highly addictive and destructive nature.”

In his plea agreement, Gutierrez-Alarcon admitted that from February of 2012 through May 16, 2012, he conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine. On May 16, 2012, during the execution of a search warrant at Gutierrez-Alarcon’s residence, police discovered 337.4 grams of methamphetamine and three digital scales.

This case was the result of an investigation by the DEA Task Force, the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office, the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office, the Minneapolis Police Department, the St. Paul Police Department, the Fergus Falls Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas M. Hollenhorst.